BIOLOGY OF STEREMNIUS CARINATUS (COLEOPTERA: CURCULIONIDAE), A REFORESTATION PEST IN COASTAL BRITISH COLUMBIA

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Abstract
Steremnius carinatus (Boheman), once considered a scavenger, has become recognized as a pest of coniferous seedlings. The weevils breed in roots of fresh stumps and in buried slash on logged areas, and adults emerge by the end of the second summer after logging. Adults girdle young seedlings from near the root collar to 1 in. above ground level, but seldom attack the second year after planting. Adult weevils are long-lived, and can survive three or more winters, establishing broods each spring. They eat a wide variety of vegetation and fruits and other materials containing sugars and starches. Greenhouse trials demonstrated selective feeding on seedlings and field tests showed that the weevils breed in most coastal coniferous species in British Columbia. Rates of brood development ranged from 2 months at 80°F to 24 months in unheated outdoor conditions. Differences in rates of development, apparently related to temperature, were found between localities. Phloem may be suitable for oviposition 2 years after logging, but often is depleted by the feeding of other bark-mining beetles. Although some weevil damage is caused by emergents from stumps on rights-of-way, damage from larger populations emerging later from newly-cut sites may be reduced by planting immediately after cutting.